As for the restrictions on the Ancient God Clan in reality, he had actually guessed it a long time ago.
Moreover, he had personally experienced it.
Gu Jianlin shook out the second document, his expression becoming particularly serious.
"On September 3rd, Rhein, one of the three giants of the Ether Association, announced that the dimensional anchor point of the Qilin Immortal Palace had been observed, located along the East Sea Coast, not far from Peak City. This coincidence makes me feel somewhat uneasy."
"Back then, the place where Brother Mu and his group dove and were polluted also happened to be the East Sea! And it was Rhein who ordered a thorough investigation at that time! I suspect he knows something. What did Brother Mu experience back then? Why did he lose his memory?"
"Now the exploration project of the Qilin Immortal Palace has hit a bottleneck. I want to participate in the investigation. The Qilin Immortal Palace is too close to my wife and child. If something unexpected happens, I want to be there to protect them."
"That's right. I must return. I can't let anything happen to my wife and child."
Gu Jianlin's expression was grim as he flipped to the third document.
"January 1st, a new year began. I returned from the underwater palace. This place is truly dangerous, with the Great Ruins haunting the city forts, and even more advanced Calamity Ruins in the depths of the sea. I got injured because those Calamity Ruins actually morphed into my son's appearance to come to me. I wanted to see my son a little longer, and for a moment, I hesitated to act."
"Actually, I should have acted. I thought the number of Calamity Ruins was scarce, but I didn't expect there were so many. In just one hour, I killed over forty versions of my son. No wonder dads like to smack their kids—it's truly satisfying. It's just a pity that kid was obedient from a young age and never gave me a chance to experience this, so I could only vent on the Calamity Ruins."
"In the relics of the underwater palace, I confirmed one thing: the Ancient God's Blood cannot be misused. With Brother Mu and the others' physical state, they cannot endure the baptism of the Ancient God's Blood. Such power would either cause their bodies to explode or lead them directly into a heavily deformed state."
"Even if Brother Mu and the others had taken Ancient God's Blood when they were first polluted, it wouldn't necessarily have been a good thing. Ancient God's Blood could extend their lives, grant them immense power, but it would also turn them into slaves."
"If the Ancient God who manufactured the Ancient God's Blood still exists in the real world, they would immediately perceive their presence. The Ancient God's spiritual will can directly control them, binding them for eternity with no escape."
"But I unexpectedly stumbled upon some secret medicine formula, which might save their lives, although the cost would be that they would lose all spirituality and turn into ordinary people. But it's still better than living neither as humans nor ghosts."
"I'll try to continue searching for this secret medicine formula, and make sure Wanwan can live under the sunlight soon."
"I've found hope for Wanwan's situation, but when it comes to curses, there still isn't any clue."
"I'm already forty years old. Perhaps I don't have much time left."
"I'm sorry, son. Dad is useless, and I owe you an apology."
In silence, Gu Jianlin set down the three documents he held.
The immense darkness pressed down on him, nearly crushing him until he could barely breathe, causing him to take step after step backward.
Because he saw a mark scratched by fingernails on the wooden table, with traces of dried blood still clinging to it.
He seemed able to imagine how, years ago, a man came to Black Cloud City Fort, building this secret base underground. He endured many lonely nights by writing reports to pass the time, reminiscing in the darkness, grieving in solitude.
Despite the lighthearted tone in the writings.
Yet the last desperate scratch mark revealed far too much despair.
In truth, Gu Jianlin had harbored some resentment towards that man.
Because he didn't care about the Gu Family and ended up divorced.
Because he was always traveling, father and son seldom spent time together.
But at this moment, Gu Jianlin finally understood how little he had known.
That man had, in fact, never left his wife and son.
He was simply forced to protect them from the shadows.
Gu Jianlin felt a sudden pang of sorrow in his heart, his eyes reddening.
Because while he lived an easy life, his father was rushing around the world to lift the curse, enduring countless life-and-death crises, living on borrowed time without complaint.
Even till the end, his father still apologized to him.
Looking back, Gu Ci'an had likely already foreseen his own death when he turned forty.
The reason he hurriedly came home that day was because he knew he had been hunted and condemned by the association, losing his right to live under the sunlight.
He wanted to take his son and escape.
In the end, the nightmare foreseen by fate arrived as scheduled.
With such a father, how could he resent him?
Gu Jianlin took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the surge of emotions within him.
At that moment, he felt someone gently tapping his hand.
Wanwan's bright eyes looked up at him. "Is Uncle Gu doing okay? When will he come back?"
Gu Jianlin lowered his head, her eyes glowing like stars in the night.
This little girl had likely already guessed his identity.
Which is why she had been secretly observing him all along.
Perhaps there were many things she wanted to ask him.
He crouched down, hesitated for a second, and then softly said, "I don't know either. But I think he's probably doing fine, right? If he knew you were still thinking of him, he'd be really happy."
Wanwan tilted her head curiously. "You don't know either?"
Gu Jianlin smiled faintly, without sound. "Yeah, just like your dad, he was slandered, chased down, and had to go into hiding. But don't worry. He's somewhere no one can find him. He's very safe."